Jacob mill e



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IMPRovsD cAR-coUPLINc.

ein rlgaule artstica tu in itttertters man mit mating aan nt tigt time.

TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CON CERN Be it known that I, JACOB MILLER, of Carrollton, in the county of Carroll, and State of Ohio, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Car-Couplings; and I de hereby declare the following to' be a full, clear, and

i exact description of tte nature, construction, and operation ofthe same, reference'being had to the accom panying drawings,l which are made a part of this specification, and in which- Figure 1 is a vertical central longitudinal section o'f a draw-bead with my improved coupling applied thereto. v

Figure 2 is aldietached view, hereinafter referred to.

`Figure is aJ'ODgitudinal elevation, with. the near side of the draw-head and one of the cheeks of the pvoted catch removed to expose the operating parts.

Similar letters' of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several gures.

In thevconpling, the subject of this invention, the connecting-link or bar, which has pointed heads at its opposite extremities, is held within the draw-head by'means.of a stationary hook or projection and a pivoted catch of peculiarfo rm,'which is held down by the pressure of a springapiston. The uncoupling is effected by means of a lever, the vibration of which disengages the pivotcd catch from the shoulders of the coupling-link, and at the same time raises the latter, by means of a lifting-pin, and places it above and beyond the reach of the stationary hook, so as to permit said coupling-link to pass freely out of the draw-head, and to prevent the necessity of standing between the cars in the act of coupling. The latter object is'v attained by means of an adjustable frame, which is adapted to support Vthecoupling-link .in a horizontal .position and in line with its draw-head, thus directing the linkinto the mouth of the draw-head of anapproaching car.

In order that others skilled in the art to which my invention appertains may be enabled to fully understand and use the same, .I will proceed to describe it in detail, in connection with the accompanying drawings.

i A may represent a draw-head, which is constructedwith an internal chamber for the accommodation of the coupling devices. These consist of a stationary hook or catch, B, projecting backward and upward from the oor'of the draw-head, anda pivoted catch, C, from the opposite sides of which latter depend the cheek-pieces Cl, which carry the transverse lifting-pin c. The catch C, together with the cheek-pieces C1 and pin C, is pressed downward by meansof the-piston or plunger D, which is actuated by means of the spring within the vertical cylindrical casing Dl, said plunger D being free to yield upward under the positive force which is applied to the catch C by means of the lever E. Thus, when the head ofthe coupling-link Fis thrust into the mouth of the draw-head A, its impngment against the inclined face of the catch C raises the latter suiciently to per= mit thehead to p ass behind it, then the spring-plunger D depresses thepivoted catch C, and together .with the stationary hookB engages the shoulders on the link-head, and thereby securely retains the same in the draw-head. To enable lthe link to be withdrawn from the draw-head the lever E is moved forward by hand, and the catch C is thereby raised and disengaged from/the link-hcad. This movement also raises thc pin c, which, moving against the lower curved face of the link-head, lifts the latter to such a height that/iti-may pass out over the hook Bl G G represent a movable frame, the vertical position G of which is located at the rear of the chamber in the draw-head, andis acted upon by the spring-plunger H. pon the forward end of the horizontal extension Gri is formed the ang'e G2, in the upper edge of which is a notch or recess, which receives and prevents th lateral movement of the link F when the frame G Grl occupies the elevated position designated by the blue lines in liga il.A When the movable frame is raised, -(which may be done by hand or in any convenient manner,)i it is pressed forward by the spring-plunger H till the vertical portion G rests upon the iloor of the draw-head, when the shoulders y q of said vertical portion stand on either side of the link-head and prevent the lateral movement of the enclosed link-head, while the link is supported and steadied at the mouth of the draw-head bythe flange G, and held down at a point near the head by the catch C. By this means the link' is held in aV horizontal position, and made to project in a direct line forward of the draw-head A'.v In this position the link is adapted to couple Ywith an approaching car, without involvingthe danger which attends the manipulation of links, as generally applied. When the cars come together the link F, being driven backward in the draw-head, forces the frame G 'GY backward,causing it Yto lose its support upon' the Hoor of the draw-head, and fall to the position indicated by red lines in fig. 1. Under this position of the parts tbe flange Gr2 and shoulders g g no longer interfere with the lateral vibration of' the link, which should, of course, be permitted, when the cursore coupled.

Hoving thus described my invention, the following is what I claim as new herein7 and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. I claim 'the pivoted coupling-piece C C and pin c, adapted by vibration to disengage tbe couplnglink F, substantially us and for the purpose set forth.

2. I claim the movable piece G, in combination with the spring H, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

3. I claim tbe combination of the pivoted catch @,pin c, hook B, Spring-plunger D, and lever E, all arranged' and operating substantially as and for tbe purpose specified.

4. I claim the movable frame G G, Hunger G2, and spring-plunger H, arranged and employed substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

The above specification of my improvement in car-couplings, signed this second day of Moi-ch, 1867.

JACOB MILLER.

Witnesses:

ALEX. A. C. KLAUCKE, D. L. HAZARD. 

